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by Doug Lanza

I lay in my bed on that cold Thanksgiving holiday weekend, my body aching all over from the flu bug that had hit me. Suddenly, the phone next to my bed rang. It was Richard Gazowsky on the other end calling from New York. He had been traveling around the US in a small Ford Taurus with his wife and three children raising money for WYSIWYG, our Christian Film Ministry. On Thanksgiving weekend, he had ended up in the New York area. I tried to lift my head but it felt like it weighed 100 pounds, so I sank back into the pillow and put the phone up next to my ear.

“Hi, Doug. I’m about to preach but I wanted to call you to tell you the news I just heard.” I continued to listen. “It seems that Sky Angel is going to launch 7 channels of Christian programming on the Echostar Dish Network.”

As I heard these words, my heart sank into my stomach. “But that’s our business plan,” I replied. “I know,” said Richard. “When I heard the news, it just about bowled me over. I was supposed to preach but I just couldn’t do it after hearing this, so I asked the worship team to sing another song so I could call you. Got to go now. I’ll talk to you a little later.”

As I hung up the phone, that sinking feeling in the pit of my stomach began to turn to righteous indignation. I was angry and felt like we had been ripped off. I began to calculate ways to retaliate for what had just happened. This was the first time that anything like this had occurred in WYSIWYG. Our reaction, good or bad, would set a course for us for years to come.

A few months before, we had traveled to Colorado to meet with Dave Carlson from the new Echostar Dish Network. We came up with a business plan offering 7 channels of Christian programming with an 8th channel devoted exclusively to prayer, called P.U.S.H. – Pray Until Something Happens. As we left for the airport that morning, I kissed my wife, Anne, and my three small children, goodbye. We were both excited and apprehensive about this trip. We felt confident that the Lord had called us to this ministry but had no idea how it would be received by corporate America.

Arriving in the Denver airport that afternoon, we felt a sense of purpose that we were on a mission from God. We picked up the rental car and headed to the hotel so we could strategize over the meeting with Echostar the next day. We reviewed our power point presentation and each of us went over the material we were to present. I was responsible for the marketing section. We had hired Barna Research to assist us with this and we had compiled some very convincing statistics regarding the Christian market. As the hour grew late, we all agreed that we should try to get some rest to be fresh for the meeting the next day. I laid my head down to attempt to get some sleep but a million ideas were whirling around in my thoughts. I struggled to try to clear my mind of all this and eventually drifted off to sleep.

The next morning, we sat in the lobby of the Echostar Dish Network Headquarters anxiously waiting for our time to present the WYSIWYG business plan. Dave Carlson came out first and greeted us warmly. As we talked with Dave, we realized that he was a Christian also. We saw this as a sign from God. Dave ushered us into the conference room where several of the big-wigs from the Dish Network were seated. We began our presentation.

God had given us a plan to launch 7 channels of Christian programming. Each channel had a bit of a different flavor and was designed to appeal to a different audience. We had a Good News Channel, as well as channels designed specifically for toddlers, teenagers, and women. I sat there, palms sweating, waiting on my turn to present the marketing statistics to the Dish Network executives.

When Richard called my name, I suddenly felt a supernatural peace come over me. I was able to deliver the marketing information in a convincing fashion.

Richard was now ready for the “closer”. He slipped the demo video we had produced into the VCR. As the grand finale of the video, we had created an animated lion that morphed into the image of the President of Echostar, Charlie Ergen. As the video ended, the Echostar execs were noticeably impressed. “Wait till Charlie sees this”, said the VP of Programming. We all shook hands, and Dave Carlson said that it had gone very, very well and that he would be back in touch with us soon.

As Richard and I walked out of the Echostar building, we ‘high-fived’ each other, celebrating the victory that had just occurred. We got in the car to head to the airport and I immediately called my wife, Anne. “Baby, God is so good. It went really well. I believe they are going to offer us a contract. Love you. We’re on our way to the airport and should be home soon.”

Several days later, a Fed Ex package arrived to our offices. We anxiously tore the package open. Sure enough, enclosed was a contract to broadcast 7 channels of Christian programming over the Echostar Dish Network. We could hardly believe this was happening. We immediately hired an entertainment lawyer and began to review this lengthy legal document. In the midst of processing all that was going on, we continued the business of collecting all the programming that would be necessary for such a momentous endeavor. A great place to meet all these program creators was the NRB (National Religious Broadcasters) convention. A group of us from WYSIWYG packed our bags and headed to the NRB convention to try to drum up some new programming contacts. As we walked the convention floor, we came across a brand new satellite network called Sky Angel. Sky Angel’s concept was to have a satellite network that would broadcast only Christian programming. We had several copies of our business plan with us so we left one with the Sky Angel people. We thought nothing of it at the time and went about our business for the duration of the convention.

As I lay in my bed, my body racked with sickness, my mind traveled back to that meeting with Sky Angel. Richard had just given me the news that Sky Angel was launching 7 channels of Christian programming over the Dish Network and now I put 2 + 2 together. We had given Sky Angel our business plan and now they were utilizing our business plan to launch their own networks.
I immediately called up our programming director, Chris Rossetti, to let him know what had just happened. Both Chris and I were stunned and angry. How could they do this? It seemed as if all our hopes and dreams had been dashed in an instant. We both tried to think of ways to put a stop to this. Maybe we could take some kind of legal action to block Sky Angel from using our business plan. Between the sickness and mulling over the news Richard had given me, I spent a very restless night.

The next morning, Richard called me again from New York. “I’ve been wrestling with this all night, Doug. My flesh wants revenge but I know the Bible says to bless. If we are to be real Christians, we have to bless Sky Angel.”
“OK, Richard. What’d you have in mind?”
“I want WYSIWYG to send a letter to our entire mailing list informing them of the launch of the Sky Angel Network and encouraging them to buy Sky Angel dishes and to subscribe to the Sky Angel Network. And I want WYSIWYG to buy the first dish and be the first to subscribe to Sky Angel.”

I knew this was God because this was not something any of us would ever have thought of doing. It was a hard pill to swallow but I knew it was the right thing to do, so I called Chris Rossetti to get the wheels in motion. We immediately drafted a letter to all our constituents with a shining endorsement of Sky Angel. Then we got on the phone and ordered a Sky Angel Dish for WYSIWYG, along with the programming package.

I was also assigned to contact Bob Johnson, the President of Sky Angel, to congratulate him and to inform him of our actions in endorsing their network. I had the telephone receiver in my hand and was ready to make the phone call but I just wasn’t ready for this conversation. I hung up the phone and bowed my head. “Lord, give me the words to say and let forgiveness be in my heart. Let me bless Bob Johnson. In Jesus name, Amen.” Once again, I picked up the receiver and this time I methodically dialed the number. A voice on the other end answered, “Hello, this is the Sky Angel Network”. I hesitated for a moment, cleared my throat and asked, “May I speak with Bob Johnson?” “Just a moment, please.”

I waited on hold for a few minutes, rehearsing in my mind what I would say to Bob. Then a voice came on the other end. “Hi, Doug.” “Hello, Bob.” I proceeded to congratulate Bob on the launching of the Sky Angel Network and informed him that we had mailed a letter to everyone on our mailing list encouraging them to buy a Sky Angel Dish and programming package. As I completed what I had to say, I could sense that Bob was moved by our actions. He thanked me and then told me a bit of his story. “You know, Doug, my family and I have sacrificed everything to see this vision come to pass. We’ve sold our home and everything we own to launch this network. Twenty years ago, people thought I was crazy to want to buy a piece of property in outer space. I went to Washington, DC because God had spoken to me about launching an all-Christian satellite. I didn’t know what I was doing but I went anyway out of obedience and by a miracle, I was able to obtain a satellite spot from the US government.”

As I listened to Bob’s testimony, I was humbled. All we had done at that point in time, was to work on our WYSIWYG Networks for a few months and come up with a business plan. Bob had spent most of his life and resources chasing this huge dream and vision God had given him. As I listened to him speak, everything came into perspective and I realized that I had the privilege of knowing this great man who was not my enemy but rather an incredible brother in Christ. I hung up the phone and thought to myself, “Thank you, Jesus”.

I heard a friend of mine speak one time about how every decision you make in your life sets a course for your future. We all have things we’ve said or done that we would like to take back or be able to do again a different way. My natural reaction in this case would have been to call our lawyers and take legal action against Sky Angel for stealing our business plan. But the “Jesus Way” is to bless. And so that day, WYSIWYG decided to bless Sky Angel and this ended up dramatically changing our future and setting a course for our ministry that we still follow to this day.

A few years ago, we broadcast our entire Christian WYSIWYG Film Festival free of charge over the Sky Angel Network. Sky Angel and Bob Johnson sent out a beautiful full-color program directory to all of their customers across the US with a full color page promoting our WYSIWYG Film Festival. Bob has now gone on to be with the Lord but I will never forget the conversation I had with him that day and his incredible testimony. Every year at our WYSIWYG Film Festival, we give out a Landmark Award for someone who has been a pioneer in Christian Media. Bob Johnson’s wife and children received the Landmark Award posthumously for Bob in 2006. That night, they cried and thanked us for honoring their father in such a wonderful way. I thought back to all that had happened between us and knew that it was my honor to know such a great man.

Until next time, remember, every decision you make sets a course for your future. God Bless.
Doug Lanza

Doug Lanza is Vice President of Christian WYSIWYG Filmworks. He has been producer for the television series “Wysiwyg”. Producer of the feature films, “Guardians”, and “The Roman Trilogy”. He is currently head of marketing for the feature film “Gravity”.